Is this for real?
by suniships
Summary: Sanada Genichirou is in for a ride when a girl, his polar opposite comes into his life and turns it upside down. What will Sanada do? SanadaxOC
1. Chapter 1: Early Morning Wins

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters. The plot's mine though.**

"I-I like you Sanada senpai! Will you go out with me?" a girl with long brown hair said shyly to the strict senior in front of her. The senior in question though, said no and without another word, left the poor girl standing in the hallway to pick up the pieces of her newly shattered heart. _Nonsense,_ he thought, as he made his way back to his class. _Don't they have anything better to do?_

As he walked back to his classroom, he heard someone say to him, "How heartless of you Sanada san! Rejecting that poor girl's feelings." He turned to see that it was Ellen Kimihiro. She was in the same year and class as Sanada. He was one of his female 'acquaintances'. He liked to keep a fair amount of distance from women, even though they tried their hardest to befriend him. But Kimihiro was a different case altogether. She was distant towards only him. And it bothered him more than he deemed appropriate.

Choosing to avoid her early morning taunt, he entered his classroom and quietly took his seat. A few moments later Kimihiro too entered. But unlike him she quickly dashed to her seat (that was next to Sanada's), dropped her head on the table and fell asleep. Sanada gave her sleeping form an irritated glare. How on earth she managed to get top grades even after sleeping through class, was a mystery to him. Yes, she had better grades than him. Yes, she was the popular vice-president of the student council. But it was all just a façade. He was sure of it. He knew what a monster she was and wondered why no one else could see her true colors. He sighed at the foolishness of his peers.

 _When does she wake up?_ He wondered, looking at the clock. It was still pretty early in the morning, but she was already tired. He thought of asking her about it in the most distant and uninterested way possible. But his mouth blurted out the words in a rather desperate manner. "What time do you get up?" he asked and immediately clamped his mouth shut and waited for a minute. She didn't move. He sighed in relief, thinking that she was probably sleeping and had not heard what he'd said. But luck was not on his side today. Because a moment later Kimihiro raised her head slowly and looked at him with a very bored expression on her face. "Around 8." was her short reply. Sanada nodded and looked at the clock only to see that it was 8:20. He gave the girl beside him a shocked stare before blurting out, again, "But how?! I knew women-"Kimihiro cut him off midway. "Do you even know women?" she snapped at him. "You keep running away from them and you claim to know how women's psychology works?! Good one." She rolled her eyes. She just could not tolerate this sexist pig named Genichirou Sanada. "Of course I know women." Sanada claimed. "Oh really? Then would you be kind enough to tell me what I might need right now?" she asked in a sugary tone. "What you need is to be disciplined so that you can spend your mornings more productively and not by sleeping in class." He answered matter-of-factly. She gave him a creepy smile before turning her expression into a very angry one and countering, "No! What I need is for your loud mouth to shut up so I can sleep in peace." And with that, Kimihiro went back to sleeping.

 _Round one: to Kimihiro._ She smiled contentedly as she continued to sleep leaving a fuming Sanada trying his best to not throw the girl out of the classroom through the window. This was going to be one long day.

Yukimura Seichi walked into the cafeteria to see a very distressed Sanada sitting at a corner table. Yukimura took a seat beside him and asked, "What's going on Sanada?" Said boy gave a side glance to his best friend and captain. "It's that girl again! I now have to do a project with her." He sighed. Yukimura chuckled at his friend's predicament. He knew Kimihiro personally but she wasn't as horrible as Sanada thought she was. Their habit of always disagreeing with each other is what made Sanada think like that.

"She isn't that bad, Sanada." "Are you kidding me?" he asked incredulously. "She has managed to turn my disciplined life upside down. She attacks me whenever I try to prove my point. My sanity wavers because of a single female's existence!" Yukimura's shoulders shook with mirth. "Sounds like you're in love." Sanada's jaw dropped at the comment. "Yeah right!" he retorted.

Soon the other members of the Rikkai Dai Tennis team joined them and Sanada forgot his troubles. Yukimura stole glances at his best friend and smirked. He had never seen him so stressed. Especially over a girl. Kimihiro had the ability to make _THE_ Sanada Genichirou go mad with frustration. The feared fukubuchou of Rikkai Dai himself was now terrified. And all because of a girl. Yukimura being the sadist of Rikkai Dai was already thinking of ways to make his fukubuchou squirm. He couldn't wait to put his plans into action.

Kimihiro sat in the library after school going through reference books for her and Sanada's project. She was waiting for Sanada to come and join her after his tennis practice. She wasn't too bothered about the pairing. Sanada was doing a fine job reacting for them both. She decided to concentrate on the actual project than make a fuss about the pairing. They had planned to take all necessary preparations today and tomorrow and complete the poster on Saturday at Sanada's house (much to his dismay).

Sanada came into the library to see Kimihiro sitting at a table with her head resting on her arms. "Did you even do any work? Or is the topic beyond your understanding?" Kimihiro just rolled her eyes at the remark. She pushed all the books and notes that she had gathered on their project, towards Sanada and went back to her resting mode. After going through the material Sanada was sure there was nothing more to add. Kimihiro then pushed a piece of paper towards him. He noticed that it was a list of things to buy for the poster. "We have to buy these." She said. " _NOW."_ Sanada knew there was no getting out of it. He was now forced to spend more time with this evil witch. He was quite surprised to see her being so cooperative about the project. They both packed their things and exited the library.

They were leaving the school together when Niou Masahiro and Kirihara Akaya spotted them. "Hey! Isn't that the fukubuchou?" Kirihara asked. Niou wanted to ignore his kouhai. But his constant pestering forced him to focus on the school gates. And sure enough it was their fukubuchou leaving the school grounds with _a girl_. His jaw dropped. _Are they holding hands?!_ Niou wouldn't have believed it in a million years. But here he was, in flesh and blood. Watching his strict fukubuchou leaving school with a girl. _I need to know more._ He thought smirking.

Kirihara though, had run out of patience and was now running back to tell the others. He burst into the club room and screamed at the top of his lungs, "Sanada fukubuchou has a girlfriend! The world's coming to an end!"

 **To be continued…**

 **Thank you Scarlet Hibiscus for your helpful review!**


	2. Chapter 2: Shopping Trip Gone Wrong

Sanada and Kimihiro walked towards the shopping district in complete silence. Sanada was a bit surprised. Kimihiro is always teasing him. Making him lose his temper. But ever since school had ended that day, she has been unusually quiet. Not that Sanada was complaining. He loved the silence. But he couldn't help but wonder what the matter was.

Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and stopped. It was Kimihiro. She was pointing to an art supplies store across the street. Sanada nodded to her and they crossed the street with her quietly following.

Once inside the store though, Kimihiro's quietness ceased and she had started to look more like a child in a candy store. She walked around the store in an excited manner looking through all aisles to find the appropriate papers and pens for their poster.

Sanada watched her in complete silence. He always felt that he had women all figured out. That they were nothing but trouble. Seeing Kimihiro had only strengthened his beliefs at first. But now he felt he just couldn't figure her out. _One moment she's out to take my life and the next, she's working peacefully with me. Just what is she thinking?_ He mused.

"SANADA-SAN" Kimihiro called rather loudly this time. For the past 5 minutes Kimihiro had been trying to get her partner's attention, but seemed really out of it. Upon hearing her calling loudly, Sanada snapped out of his thoughts to look at the girl. She was holding two papers of the same shade (or so he thought) in her hands. "Which one should we take?" she asked. Indecision etched on her face. Sanada knew he shouldn't make any questions regarding the shade. Pretending to look carefully, he randomly pointed to the paper in her right hand. Kimihiro gave him an annoyed look and proceeded towards the cash counter with the other paper mumbling something about horrible taste.

He rolled his eyes. _If you have it figured out, why even ask!_ He paid for the things and walked out of the store. Not bothering to take the bag Kimihiro was carrying. They then proceeded to go back home, having no clue of the rowdy bunch of bishounen following them. Oh, only if they knew the excitement they were creating just by going shopping together.

"Wahhhh! You were right Kirihara-kun!" Jackal said. None of the regulars believed Kirihara when he had burst into the club room to reveal the news. Niou's confirmation on the matter had them confused. But when the hand holding incident was mentioned, the entire team (sans yukimura), decided to go and 'find out'.

Just to clear things up, there was no hand-holding incident. It was just Sanada passing the supplies list to Kimihiro. In his excitement, Niou had thought them to be holding hands.

"Isn't that Kimihiro-Chan?"

"Aa"

"But I thought that they were always quarrelling!"

"Maybe it's just to fool the others."

"But we won't be fooled this easily, fukubuchou!"

"We know your secret. Hehehe"

They watched with great interest as Sanada and Kimihiro walked away together. Not having a clue of what the tennis team was conspiring.

The next day was the same as always. Well, almost. The day was filled with his and Kimihiro's bickering, classes and tennis practice. But for some reason almost all his friends were giving him weird looks. Not that he cared. He had a crazy bunch of boys as friends. No one can really tell what they are up to. But even Yukimura was giving him weird smiles. And that got him thinking. _It's like everyone knows something except me._ He wondered what it could be.

Yukimura had also received an elaborate report of his team's sleuthing. He had a hard time controlling his laughs for he knew what the case actually was. But he wasn't going to bring his friends' hopes down that easily. No. He was a kind person. And he wanted his friends to _have some fun._ Poor Sanada, he wouldn't even know what hit him.

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N: This chapter may be a bit short. Hoping to update more soon. Please review. It would mean a lot to the author. :3**


	3. Chapter 3: A Different Person

Upon opening the door, Sanada was quite taken aback by what he saw. It was Saturday, and Ellen Kimihiro was in front of his house to complete their poster.

He was quite sure she was the same girl that he saw at school every day, but she looked so very different in casual attire. She stood there, at his doorstep with her long raven hair tied loosely in a French braid, wearing black skinny pants and a loose beige sweater and somewhat long feathery earrings.

Sure she looked nice in her school uniform. But today she looked stunning. Not that Sanada would ever admit that. Not out loud at least. He stood there contemplating what he should say, but the girl beat him to it. With a bright smile she said, "Good morning Sanada san." Replying with a nonchalant 'hn' he let her in.

Once inside his home, Sanada led her into the living room to introduce her to his family. "Finally Genichirou," said his mother. "You've brought a girl home. I'm so proud of you." Sanada wanted to bash his head against the wall but chose to let it slide. After he was done introducing his parents, he then stirred her attention towards his grandfather. She greeted him very politely and introduced herself. _Who knew this nightmare of a girl could be so…..different._ Sanada's thoughts were interrupted by the voice of his grandfather. "Call me ojisan, Kimihiro." Sanada and Kimihiro both stared at him for a while before Kimihiro smiled warmly and squealed "Ojisan!" she even got a pat on the head.

Sanada could not believe this. If it were him, he would've received a few bashes of his grandfather's cane and quite a few lectures on how to behave properly. Not that he would want to behave in such a manner. But still. _Maybe it's just because she's a guest,_ he thought. _Or maybe they too cannot see through her pretenses. I have to look out for them._ He huffed.

Sanada's mother cleared the dining table for them to work on their poster. They concentrated on the work at hand. From the living room though, Sanada's grandfather eyed his grandson and his friend.

 _She's polite and wise. She is not the least bit scared of Genichirou's strict nature. In fact, she seems to handle his temper rather effortlessly. She can guide him and support him. He seems to listen to her too._ He thought deeply. _Yes, she would do. Only if Genichirou would stop restricting himself and be more aware of his surroundings._

Kimihiro and Sanada were sitting at the dining table still working on their poster. They were cutting colored papers to write their points on and sticking them to the poster. Sanada tried to cut acceptable circles out of a peach colored paper and ended up using all of it without being able to achieve his goal. He started wondering how Kimihiro would react.

Kimihiro, on the other hand, was busily cutting perfect circles out of the colored papers and writing away her points on them, hoping to stick them after they were finished writing. She looked to her right to see her partner's progress in the matter and almost screamed bloody murder. Her partner, aka the vice-captain of the Rikkai Dai tennis team, had managed to destroy all of the peach colored paper without cutting one proper circle and was now trying to escape his crime by giving her an 'I'm very busy right now' look. Boy, was he going to get it.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kimihiro asked between gritted teeth. Sanada gave her a hard stare as if she was asking a very stupid question. But seeing her expression he was starting to second guess his choices. "I-I'm working. What does it look like?!" he said, stuttering slightly. _Must not let her get to me. Must not let her fear sink in._ He kept chanting in his mind. But it didn't seem like it was helping the situation very much.

"You managed to finish my peach paper without cutting one proper circle." She said in a very calm voice which really made Sanada rethink about his opinions on teamwork. "W-well, I was trying…" he tried to think of a way to validate his blunder. But there was no way out. "Trying what?" she asked. "Conveying your strictness to the paper?" she said tauntingly. "The great Sanada Genichirou, one of the three monsters of Rikkai Dai, cannot cut a paper circle." She said pretending to announce it to others. Sanada immediately put his hand over her mouth to stop her from screaming but she bit him and jumped out of her chair upon freeing herself. "This is what you get for committing crimes and trying to conceal it." She said pointing an accusing finger towards Sanada. He pressed the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he felt a severe headache coming. _Here we go again,_ he thought. _I take back my opinion from before. She's still a complete nightmare._

From behind them, sitting in the living room, a certain grandfather smiled at the bickering of the two kids working together. _Yes,_ he thought. _She would do perfectly._

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N: I am obsessed with Sanada Genichirou. I don't really know why. Please review.**


	4. Chapter 4: Second Thoughts

Monday morning started with Sanada heading to the teachers' office to drop off their poster project. They were submitting their work ahead of time, like the obedient students they were.

He was about to hand over the completed project, when he looked it over once last time. Kimihiro had done a wonderful job. The poster looked attractive yet not girly. It had all the important points of their topic. _Just what you'd expect from one of the top students._ He thought but looked horrified a moment later. _Just because she has slightly better grades than me doesn't mean I'm dumb!_ He scoffed at his own silly thoughts.

He submitted their project and was going towards the tennis courts, when his mind travelled back to the events of last Saturday.

*** _Flashback***_

 _Genichirou came into the kitchen to see Kimihiro helping his mother clean the dishes. It was after they had finished their poster and had had lunch. His mother was saying that she didn't need help cleaning up, but Kimihiro insisted otherwise. He quietly listened to their conversation without making them aware of his presence. "I'm glad to know that Genichirou knows such a nice girl." Mrs. Sanada said smiling. What?! No! You don't know her, mother! She's evil! He thought narrowing his eyes._

 _"Your son is a nice person too. He just doesn't know how to show it." Kimihiro replied. Sanada was dumbstruck. He had a hunch that she wasn't the same person he saw at school, but now he was sure. Ellen Kimihiro would never compliment him. Not even if her life depended on it. He quickly slipped out of the kitchen before they caught him eavesdropping._

 _They soon finished cleaning up and Kimihiro decided that it was time to go. Genichirou_ _pretended to come_ _came down to see Kimihiro packing her things. "Leaving?" he asked. She nodded in reply. "I have to be somewhere. I'm getting late." She said her goodbyes to the Sanadas and headed for the front door. Bidding Genichirou farewell, Kimihiro left._

 _Genichirou stood at the doorway watching Kimihiro's retreating figure grow smaller. Maybe she isn't that bad after all. He thought somewhat agreeing with Yukimura._

*** _End of Flashback***_

Kimihiro and Yukimura were deep in conversation when Sanada came to the courts. The others had already started practice. Watching them talk like that, without a care in the world, made Sanada wonder what was so important that they didn't even see him come. _She didn't even look at me, and she usually notices everything. Wait, what?!_ He shook his head and coughed a couple of times to relieve himself of such thoughts. He didn't care about her. Nope. He just needed her to look at him so he could ask her to stop talking, so that he could talk to Yukimura about more _important things_. _Yes, that's it. Nothing else._ He justified his fleeting thoughts.

His coughing got the two to look at him. "Sanada" Yukimura said acknowledging his presence. "Yukimura. Kimihiro." He nodded to both of them. "What are you two doing?" "Planning world peace," came Kimihiro's reply. "It starts with everyone boycotting you." "As if," Sanada retorted. "We all know who among us should be boycotted for being a gorilla." "That would be you, Sanada-san." was Kimihiro's quick reply. Sanada couldn't believe this girl. She could wear his patience out in a matter of minutes. She was definitely evil.

Yukimura, clearly surprised by Sanada's talkative side stopped them before they took the tennis courts as their battlefield. "Sanada," he called in a stern voice. "We have to practice." Sanada was still frowning, but listened to his captain's order. _Not so bad after all, my behind._ He left for the clubroom without another word.

Kimihiro stared at said gorilla's retreating figure for a while then turned to Yukimura with a smile. "I'll be leaving now Yukimura-san. See you later." And she was gone.

Yukimura shook his head. _They're always fighting like children. Do they even know that they like each other?_

"Did you see that, senpai?" Kirihara asked the trickster. "Yeah" he said. He had already spread a rumor around school claiming to have seen Sanada going on a date with a girl. "He was jealous of the buchou because Kimi senpai didn't pay attention to him." Kirihara decided. He liked to call Kimihiro Kimi-senpai and said upperclassmen didn't seem to mind. So he had become rather fond of the girl even though he was at an age when boys thought girls had cooties.

"I guess the fukubuchou is the jealous type, eh?" Niou winked. "Sanada? The jealous type?" Yanagi Renji inquired, as he joined the conversation. "Sanada seems to be very protective of his girlfriend." Yagyuu observed. "There's a 60.04% chance that there's nothing really going on between them and you guys are only looking for a reason to slack off." Renji sighed. "But then again there's the 39.96% that they have a secret relationship. And for Sanada, that's a _lot._ " Niou argued.

They were going to argue some more when they noticed that the topic of their argument had finished his warm up laps and was now entering the courts.

Upon entering the courts, Sanada was mobbed by his teammates. They all had an expectant look on their faces. But Sanada could not tell what it was that they were expecting _. Especially from him._ "When were you planning on telling us?" Nious asked after a _long_ moment of silence. Sanada raised his eyebrows in confusion. _Tell them what?_ "Yeah! Tell us!" Kirihara agreed. "We saw you guys holding hands last week. You and Kimi senpai!" For a moment Sanada wasn't sure if he had heard right. But the silence around them confirmed that he did. Sanada's face turned into the scariest one ever encountered by his teammates. "If you have the time to fool around, then you have time to practice more." He said in a very low tone. "Y-You can't h-hide your relationship from u-us. I-it's not f-fair." Kirihara countered, stuttering. Everyone nodded.

Sanada was having a hard time controlling his temper. _Have they gone mad? How could they even think that I'd want to go out with that, that girl!_ Even her thoughts managed to drive him mad. He'd never go out with her even if his life depended on it. And when did they hold hands! Taking deep breaths he tried to calm himself. But it wasn't helping much. "50 laps," he said. His anger barely in control. "What?" Niou asked. He hadn't been able to hear Sanada in all this commotion. "50 LAPS! NOW!" Sanada yelled at the top of his lungs, hand ready to slap anyone who dared to defy him. Everyone ran for their lives. Kirihara was screaming "KOWAII! Just because she likes spending time with buchou and not you doesn't mean you can punish us to vent your anger." Sanada was shaking from rage. "WHAT WAS THAT!" he yelled back. When a reply wasn't heard, he went back to his thoughts. Even being seen with Kimihiro was bad for his health. _Do we really look like a couple though?_ His face heated up at the thought.

Yukimura stood outside the courts, watching his team's actions. A serene smile on his face. _Well, this ought to be fun._

 **To be continued…**


	5. Chapter 5: Embarrassing Revelations

Ellen Kimihiro laid in her bed, thinking. The digital clock on her nightstand read 2:37 am. She just couldn't get any sleep at all. Her mind kept going back to the raven haired 'gorilla'. She wasn't upset, really. Just confused. At first she was pretty sure she didn't like him at all. But now, she wasn't very sure if she felt her hatred towards him as strongly as she thought she did.

" _Your son is a nice person too. He just doesn't know how to show it."_ She remembered her words to Sanada's mother. _Why did I even say that?_ Sure she wouldn't want his mother to think her son was a bad person. But she could've simply kept her mouth shut. _Not like I was lying. He's pretty nice. A bit rough. His abs…_ Horrified by her own thoughts she hid under her blankets. She peeked out and got back to thinking about him. _Again._

 _Now that I think about it, he was being really weird the past few days._ Which wasn't an exaggeration. Sanada wouldn't talk to her, yet he would steal glances at her. And when he got caught he would turn red and look away.

Sanada was acting rather strange around her ever since his 'confrontation' with his teammates. Even if their accusation wasn't true he just couldn't bring himself to argue talk with her the way he always did. Ellen, however, was not aware of this. Which is why she lay in her bed, wondering about the handsome, _er_ gorilla. She thought she wouldn't be able to get any sleep because of _that damned gorilla_. But somewhere between admiring and cursing him, she fell asleep. A tanned rough figure filling her dreams.

" _Sanada-san," Ellen laughed lightly. Ellen? Her laughter sounded like little silver bells. So sweet. But why was he calling her by her first name? He was sure they weren't that close. She caressed his face. Her touch, sinfully soft. Before she could go away from him, he grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap. "You're not going anywhere." He brushed a few strands of raven hair away from her face and bent his head down. Eyes focusing on her soft pink lips. "Mmmm" Ellen moaned lightly as his mouth came in contact with hers. But before he could do anything else Ellen hit him in the head…_

He jolted up from his sleep. He was in the library with Akaya _in his arms._ The poor boy had pulled a book over his mouth to keep his senpai from violating him. With his free hand he had managed to land a blow on the upperclassman's head that woke him up. Sanada immediately let go of the second year ace.

"What the hell fukubuchou!" Akaya yelled. He had forgotten that they were in a library what with his innocence at stake and had received a warning glare from the librarian. He became quiet for a while before whisper-yelling "What is wrong with you! What sort of perverted dreams were you having about innocent Kimi senpai?!" Sanada didn't say a word. In all honesty, the fukubuchou had lost his voice. He seemed very red in the face and refused to look at his kohai.

Akaya had come to the library looking for him because Yukimura had told him to. But he was NOT AT ALL prepared for what actually happened. He felt weak from fear. Of being almost _severely_ violated. The poor ace had even begun to think that getting slapped by his fukubuchou was better than getting kissed by him. Still shocked from the traumatic incident, Akaya delivered his message and nearly flew out of the library.

Akaya looked shaken when he entered the cafeteria and sat with his team. Yukimura and the others had immediately taken notice of it. "Oi, brat" Niou called. "What's wrong Kirihara?" Yukimura gently shook his shoulder. Akaya hid his face with his hands. "Senpai almost violated meee!" was his muffled reply. Everybody gave each other a confused look. "What was that?" Niou asked. Akaya removed his hands from his face and began, "Fukubuchou almo-" but was cut off when a large hand clamped over his mouth. Looking up he saw the person he did NOT want to see right now. Sanada Genichirou. He gave the boy a 'Tell-them-and-I-will-violate-you' look, or that's what Akaya thought. On Sanada's part though, it was just a stern glare.

The team watched this strange exchange between the ace and the fukubuchou. Finally when Sanada had removed his hand from Akaya's mouth, the boy had jumped out of his seat and rushed out of the cafeteria. Confusing the other team members even more.

Yukimura raised his eyebrows at his friend questioningly. "It's nothing." He said gruffly before leaving the cafeteria as well. After being silent for a while the others went back to their meals. Yukimura kept thinking of the scene from a while ago. _They're definitely hiding something._

Sanada spent the rest of the day feeling very uncomfortable. He avoided Kimihiro like the plague. And in class, her seat being next to his did not help. He kept looking everywhere except at Kimihiro. Just sitting beside her made him think of _the dream. That sweet dream._

As soon as classes were over for the day, he almost ran out of his class and towards the courts without so much as sparing anyone a glance. _I just can't look at her. What if she finds out about the dream if I look at her? Oh my god._

She didn't know anything. And looking at her probably wouldn't hint anything at all. But Sanada's mind was in overdrive. The fukubuchou of the Rikkai Dai tennis team was panicking. He was flustered. THAT. NEVER. HAPPENED.

He more or less ran to the courts. He knew Kimihiro would probably get pissed off by his actions. But he chose to live. Because if she got to know any of this, he'd probably turn up dead. He could almost see it. _Headlines_ : _Dashing tennis fukubuchou found dead from girl getting to know about his perverted dreams._

 _I can't think of these things right now. I have the district prelims coming up. I shouldn't get distracted._ He tried to reason with his reeling mind. _I'll think about it after the tournament._ With this thought in mind, he reached the courts to put all of his concentration into playing and winning.

But when he finally reached the courts, he suddenly had a very odd feeling in his gut. Yukimura was standing by the courts waiting for him. The smile on his face, when the captain had spotted his target, screamed danger. _What is it now?_

 **To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 6: Hidden Talent?

_*Gulp*_ "I'm not sure what you're talking about." Akaya said nervously. "Is that so?" Yukimura's smile was serene. They were currently in the clubroom. Yukimura had said that he wanted to _talk_ to Akaya and no one should disturb them. He, of course, didn't have to voice out his order. The sadistic aura emitting from the clubroom was more than enough to keep anyone from entering.

"Let's try again, shall we? What happened when you went to look for Sanada?" Akaya kept looking here and there. "N-nothing b-buchou." The captain's smile only grew, making Akaya even more uncomfortable. His smiles never indicated anything positive. But in this case, being tortured by his captain was better than having to deal with the fukubuchou. He was quite sure of it. But Yukimura's next words made him rethink his decision.

"How about we strengthen our bonding? Like spend the rest of the week together. And the weekend at Genichirou's. Just you, me and Genichirou. Doesn't that sound nice?" Yukimura's smile was almost maniacal. "W-what?!" Akaya squeaked. Yukimura only smiled. "Fukubuchou will kill me if I tell anyone anything. Or worse he'd probably do those weird things again!" Akaya shuddered at the memory. "Weird things?" the captain mentally congratulated himself for being able to get a clue. Akaya looked terrified. "Yes! YES! He has weird dreams of Kimi senpai and he keeps calling her name. Then he tries to KISS ME! Oh that poor book, the one that got kissed while trying to save me!" He waited for a moment to catch his breath but stopped. His face looked like he was about to explode after he realized what he had done.

"Nooo!" he cried. "I don't want to die! Or be violated again! Save me buchou!" (A/N: Now, we all know Aka-chan isn't all that dramatic. But the 'trauma' in question had managed to frazzle his nerves. Hehe.) Yukimura gave his ace a sympathetic pat. "There there, no need to worry, ne? I'll take care of Sanada." He said smiling. On the inside though, he was having a hard time controlling his laughs. _Poor Akaya, almost got kissed by a guy. And by Sanada, no less._ They walked out of the clubroom together. "Now go ahead and do your laps." Yukimura said moving to sit by the courts. Akaya nodded and ran off. _Weird dreams about Kimihiro, eh? This ought to be fun._

Kimihiro was very mad. Huffing and puffing, she entered the student council office to do her after school paperwork. She kept grumbling under her breath as she went through her paperwork.

 _Who does he think he is, ignoring me like that! Up until now it was okay. I actually thought he was a decent person. Urgghh!_ She just couldn't figure this guy out. _It was so much better when I kept more distance from him. First he picks fights with me, then gives me weird glances, and now he ignores me! Completely! The guts of that guy!_

At the student council office, she did her job half-heartedly. Almost everyone could tell that their vice president was really out of it. Arima Yuna, a fellow student council member and a close friend to Kimihiro, found her friend's actions to be a bit odd and called out to her. But her friend didn't respond and kept launching strings of colorful words in a low voice. Arima stifled a laugh. She was aware of her friend's situation. Kimihiro and Sanada's arguments were pretty much famous and Arima had witnessed it quite a few times. They would fight like a married couple, bickering about petty issues. But truth be told, it was quite entertaining to see the fearsome Sanada getting flustered and agitated only because of _one_ _crazy girl_.

Seeing that her friend wasn't going to respond to her anytime soon, she put a hand on her shoulder to stop her grumbling.

"What!" Kimihiro snapped. Arima put her hands up in surrender.

"I'm sorry Yu-chan, I didn't notice it was you."

"I have been calling you for a while now."

"Really?" Kimihiro sounded guilty. "I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. Want to talk about it?"

"Talk about what?"

"Sanada san? That's the reason for your sour mood, ne?" *wink*

"O-of course not!" a red-faced Kimihiro replied.

"Yeah, right."

Kimihiro tried to look very annoyed even though her blush was a dead giveaway. Arima chuckled at her friend's antics. _When will they ever grow up and admit it?_ She sighed.

"Let's just finish up here and then go get some ice cream. Okay?" Kimihiro's face lit up with joy at the sound of the offer. "Okay!" was her enthusiastic reply.

Sanada tried to ignore his beloved captain and head to the clubroom, for Yukimura right now, was giving him the creeps. He was just going to pretend that he didn't notice Yukimura _staring and smiling at him_ and get on with his practice. Quite fortunately, he was able to dodge his captain before practice. _I just have to pack up real fast and leave before Yukimura can engage me in any of his strange conversations._ He thought as he ran his laps.

He wanted to put all his concentration on his practice and had been able to achieve it. _More or less._ He was able to lead everyone properly and had won all his practice matches. But every time his eyes drifted to his captain, he would be seen looking straight at Sanada with this creepy smile on his face. And Sanada would feel a cold shiver run down his spine.

As soon as practice was over, he changed and dashed out of the clubroom. He didn't even bother to check if the captain was in the clubroom or not. Survival was his top priority now. He ran all the way to the school gates only to stop dead in his tracks. For at the school gates, waiting for him, was none other than Yukimura. "Sanada." Yukimura nodded to him. _"Let's walk home together, shall we?"_ the captain said with one of his sadistic smiles. Sanada gulped.

 _This could not be happening._

Arima and Kimihiro walked by some street courts after having ice cream. "Haven't played against you in a while Elle." Arima said nodding to the courts to their left. "You know I suck, _fukubuchou."_ Kimihiro teased. Arima Yuna was the fukubuchou of the girls' tennis team of Rikkai Dai and was a national level tennis player.

"Oh quit it, Elle. We all know that's bull. The captain's asked you to join the team so many times. But you refused her." Arima retorted. Kimihiro only stuck her tongue out. "I don't have my racquet." "I have an extra one." Arima smirked. Kimihiro huffed at her friend's efficiency. "Thanks a lot _miss perfect."_

They took their positions and Kimihiro served. Her serve was easy for Arima to return. "Play seriously." She scolded. "I don't know what you're talking about." Kimihiro replied. They volleyed for a while and then suddenly Arima started playing with more force, compelling Kimihiro to use better moves. But Arima managed to score. "Losing your touch, I see." She winked. "You haven't seen anything yet." Kimihiro growled. They again took position and this time Arima served. _Well, this will be fun._ She thought.

*** _Timeskip to almost two hours later***_

Both Arima and Kimihiro were sweating profusely and grinning. They shook hands. Arima had won 6 games to 4. "I could've won that." Kimihiro scoffed. Arima shrugged. "I told you to play seriously. But you're oh-so stubborn. You really could've won Elle." Kimihiro stuck her tongue out and grinned. "But we had fun!" Arima couldn't help laughing. Her friend was such a kid.

"Did you ever tell Sanada san about you playing tennis?" They were heading home from the courts when Arima decided to drop the question. "Pfft. No." In reality, Kimihiro was planning to tell Sanada that, but their current _cold war_ made her not want to do it anymore. _It would've been fun if we could play together. We could spend more time- wait! No! I don't need that kind of negativity in my life._ "Do you like him?" Arima asked. "NO!"Kimihiro replied too fast. Her eyes wide and face red. "I-I g-gotta go home, Yu-chan. See ya tomorrow." She ran off without waiting for a reply. Arima stood there with a big smile on her face as Kimihiro ran off. She needed to make a call.

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N: I have decided to consider Black fire283's suggestion and I've added yet another skill to our very talented and lovable Ellen Kimihiro. Please review!**


	7. Chapter 7: What Now?

Sanada fell face-first on his bed groaning in frustration. The world's out to get him. He was sure of it. The walk home with Yukimura was like a cherry on top of this horribly embarrassing day. He had never felt so cornered in life. Not even in a losing tennis match (which didn't happen often).

Yukimura had claimed that he needed to buy a few things on their way home and asked if Sanada would accompany him. Sanada had wanted to say no and run for his life. But Yukimura's sad smile at seeing Sanada's discomfort broke his heart. And he ended up being guilt-tripped into going on the _oh-so important shopping trip._

The shopping trip was a fluke. They basically roamed around the shopping district looking for stuff to buy. He had a feeling Yukimura had somehow found out about _the embarrassing incident._ He wasn't sure. And for the sake of his sanity he refused to confirm his suspicions. If someone came to know about this, he would have to die of shame. The feared fukubuchou was now having mushy dreams about girls. _How embarrassing!_

 _Do keep your hormones and hands in control, ne?_ Yukimura's words played in his mind. Yeah, right. _As if any of that was my fault. It's her fault. All of it. Yes, that's it._

"Moshi moshi. This is Arima Yuna." Arima said into the phone while climbing into her bed. "Moshi moshi Arima san." Came the reply from the other side. "I couldn't get much out of her, but I have a feeling she likes _the other party_. Or at least thinks of him." Arima said in a serious manner. "We need to try harder Arima san. I too, wasn't successful in attaining any necessary information today during our, _ahem_ shopping trip." Arima chuckled. She knew of said shopping trip. They sounded like agents passing crucial information. "The other party is a bit hard headed. It might not be so easy." " _Both parties are."_ The person on the other end countered. " _Tell me about it._ " She said wryly. "We need a plan." "I _have_ one." Arima could almost see the devious smile on her partner's face. "What are you waiting for? Tell me already!" Arima said growing impatient.

The next half hour or so was spent discussing _said plan_ thoroughly. They decided the _wheres and hows_ of the first phase and called it a day.

"Well, let me know if anything else is needed, _Yukimura san."_ "You too. Arima san." With that they both hung up.

Soon after Sanada's 'confrontation' with the other team members, Yukimura had shared his thoughts with the fukubuchou of the girls' team. Both had wanted to test their theories out. Somewhere along the way, they'd become really good friends and had realized that both Sanada and Kimihiro's feelings ran deeper than they thought. But their childishness didn't let them accept, let alone admit it. So, being the _great_ friends that they were, they decided to bring them together. Thus all the information gathering and planning.

The sadist captain smirked as he prepared to gather _6 capable young men_ to help himself and Arima in their plan.

Sanada was going through his World History textbook. His grandfather had found him sleeping face down and half-hanging from the bed. Embarrassed and tired from the day's events, he had fallen asleep without so much as changing out of his uniform.

His eyes stopped on a chapter they'd discussed a few weeks ago.

 _We did that project together on this chapter. She made a pretty poster. She looked so pretty the day she came home. I miss talking to her._

He slammed his textbook close and headed downstairs. He needed help.

Once downstairs, Sanada decided to slip out of the house unnoticed and go for a jog. But fate would not have it. Apparently, his fate refused to cooperate with him much lately. His grandfather had caught him sneaking out and was dragging him over to their patio.

Sanada sat beside his grandfather with a red face. He was too embarrassed to say anything. The light breeze outside wasn't helping much. This was the first time someone had caught him sneaking out like that (it was his first time sneaking out like that, poor Gen-chan). And what was worse was that his grandfather was the one to catch him.

He was brought out of his thoughts with a shooting pain on his back. Gen'emon had seen no other way to get his grandson to snap out of it than hitting him with his trusty cane. "Pay attention while I'm talking. What happened to you Genichirou? " said grandson only stared dumbly.

"What happened to that friend of yours?" Gen'emon asked. "Kimihiro, wasn't it?"

Sanada gulped and nodded.

"Well?" Gen'emon asked again.

"We haven't been talking…lately." He mumbled.

"Oh? Why is that?"

"She.. uh.. she's not.. um she's busy, I think."

Gen'emon only raised his eyebrows.

"Plus," he continued "I have other things to deal with."

"Well that's a shame. I thought she was a fine young lady."

"B-but she gets on my nerves, distracts me and argues with me. She does not give me peace." He said grumpily.

Gen'emon sighed. _What did I do to get such a clueless grandson? He's too strict for his own good._

"Maybe. But she does make you happy. Does she not?" he asked. Genichirou only opened and closed his mouth a few times in an attempt to say something. But in the end, sighed in defeat. "Well…" he trailed off. "A little bit, I guess."

"Shouldn't that be a strong enough reason for you to be with her?"

"…"

"You know, having someone who makes you happy is a good thing. You're young, Genichirou. Now is the right time to have friends, go on dates and have fun. Even your grandfather has done his share of dating when he was young." Gen'emon winked. Genichirou stared at his grandfather with wide eyes. Gen'emon laughed at his grandson's bewilderment.

"Talk to her. Tell her how you feel. She could be feeling the same." He smiled.

Sanada nodded in understanding.

For a smart, athletic kid, Genichirou was pretty dull in the romance department. His grandfather shook his head helplessly. He only hoped Genichirou would learn to live and have fun like other kids. _He frowns too much for a high school kid. Maybe Kimihiro could bring him out of his strict shell. I hope he realizes this in time._

Sanada sat in his bed rewinding his conversation with his grandfather. _She really does make me happy._ He thought. _Her smiles, her bickering, everything about her makes my life more interesting. I want her to know that. I'll definitely tell her. But how?_

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N: I have a feeling, this chapter is very crappy. Please review and let me know what you all think.**


	8. Chapter 8: The Conspiracy

Sanada was sitting in his class going through his class notes when Kimihiro arrived. He was somewhat glad that they didn't have morning practice that day. He could concentrate on Kimihiro for once. _But what should I say?_ He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. Kimihiro sat down, went through her homework and then stared out of the window.

Sanada shifted in his seat, ready to say _at least something._ But stopped, when he heard the classroom door open. "Yo!" Niou greeted him as he stepped in. Sanada's strict face was back on. "What is it?" he was annoyed at the trickster for interrupting his plans. He briefly looked at Kimihiro sitting beside him then turned his attention back to the trickster.

Seeing Kimihiro sitting next to Sanada, he flashed her a smile "Hey, Elle." "Hey Haru-kun." She replied with a smile. Niou smirked at the nicknames they'd given each other. They weren't particularly close, but being the fun loving people they were, they decided to give each other cute nicknames.

Sanada, on the other hand, felt a pang of jealousy. _They have nicknames for each other?_ _How close are they?_ _She doesn't even call me just Sanada. It's always Sanada san._ His face looked like a deflated balloon. One that didn't go unnoticed by Niou. He smirked, "I need to talk to you." Sanada nodded and followed him out of the class.

As soon as they were out, Renji came in and sat on Sanada's seat. "Konichiwa Renji san." Kimihiro greeted. Renji only nodded in reply. "I have an important message for you." He began in a mysterious way. "Ok?" "We will be going to the amusement park in the outskirts of Kanagawa, this weekend. The captain wants you to join us. Your friend Arima Yuna has been invited too. So, will you come along?" Renji's words fell on deaf ears because Kimihiro was in deep thought. _He's going out with the team!_ _How could he! He didn't even mention it once. And I've been sitting here with him for such a long time! Trying to avoid me like I'm beneath him. Acting all high and mighty as if I don't deserve to hang out with your team. Well, too bad I'm going._ "Umm.. Kimihiro?"Renji waved his hand in front of her face. "Huh?" Kimihiro asked, coming out of her trance. "Are you coming, then?" Renji asked again. "Oh yeah!" Kimihiro answered, a little too enthusiastically that made Renji raise his brows in confusion. "Uhh, it's nothing, Renji san." she waved it off. "Thanks for inviting me." Renji nodded and left. And Kimihiro went back to thinking. _You don't want me there, eh? I'll make sure to give you a shock you won't forget. Rotten gorilla. Taking advantage of my soft spot-Hey! No! No soft spots for gorillas._

Once out of class, Sanada spotted Yukimura standing near the stairs. He smiled and waved at his fukubuchou. "I have something to announce. I've made an important plan." He said seriously as niou and Sanada came to stand in front of him. "And?" Sanada asked. "We're going to an amusement park after our Saturday morning practice. We have our district prelims coming up and I think we should spend a little more time together to make our bonding better." Sanada had a confused look on his face, "A-amusement park? But that's for kids!" Yukimura had an ominous smile on his face. "You have a better idea?" "W-well, ummm, I-I guess that's fine. Amusement parks are great." he gulped. Niou only smirked at his reaction. Yukimura could achieve almost anything he set his eyes on. The first phase of their captain's plan was working out smoothly. He even saw Renji leave Sanada's class without anyone noticing him. _This would be fun._

The conversation didn't last for too long because of the bell ringing and Sanada was saved from having a cardiac arrest from his respected yet _sadistic_ captain. He was free to go to the safety of his class. But once he was in his seat, he noticed that something was very wrong. Kimihiro was mad. No, that's not it. _She was furious._

Sanada sat near the courts, eating his lunch. He couldn't really understand why she was so mad at him. _She was right. I really don't know women._ He sighed. Ever since he got back in class after talking to Yukimura and Niou, she refused to look at him. It was like the air was thick with tension between them. But it could just be his wild imagination too. After all, he _was_ nervous about making up with her (sort of).

He looked to his side and saw Kimihiro standing around with a few other girls, talking and laughing. He suddenly realized that he knew almost nothing about her other than the basics. _I don't know about her likes or dislikes. Maybe talking to her friends would do the trick._ Once again he looked at their direction and paled. He wasn't going to talk to a bunch of giggly school girls. Especially regarding their friend. _Well, I AM a school boy. I just have to… I'll just find some other way._

Suddenly, he felt someone's presence beside him. He turned to see Renji biting into his own lunch. "There is a 57.67% chance you're checking a girl out." He said. Sanad snorted. Count on Renji to know the truth along with figures. "No. I was just thinking." "Ahh. Then I assume you were thinking of the girl you were looking for." He inquired. But he was replied with only silence. Renji smiled. "What?" Sanada asked, not really liking his friend's reaction to their _awkward_ conversation. "Oh, nothing." He said waving it off. "I am just looking forward to seeing you all this weekend. That's all." Sanada gave his friend a dubious look. _He wants to go the amusement park that badly? Would Kimihiro want to go as well? What sort of things does she like?_ He wondered.

Sanada suddenly had an idea. _Renji is our data master. Could he have a few pages on Kimihiro as well? Should I ask him? Will my reputation remain unscathed afterwards?_ He pondered for a while. But when he finally decided to ask the data master, Renji had already left. He face palmed. _Maybe it's a sign to not ask him anything at all._ He sighed.

Kimihiro stole glances at the fukubuchou sitting not too far away from her and her friends, eating his lunch without a care in the world. _He's awful. He doesn't even feel like letting me in on his team things. Just look at him! Not a trace of guilt on that handso- umm horrid face. Utterly horrifying face!_

She wasn't even paying any attention to her friends' conversation. Only one pair of blue eyes kept track of her silent huffing. Arima smiled and observed her friends antics. It was Kimihiro who had suggested that they eat lunch near the courts. Arima had asked her the reason for that but got stutters and weird hand gestures in reply. Seeing that her friend would rather suffocate herself than answer her, she complied. Kimihiro would rather be caught dead than admit her real reason for choosing said spot.

Kimihiro tried to concentrate on the conversation her friends were having. _No use trying to think of that bully. He just doesn't want me near him. That's why he's been avoiding me. Maybe I shouldn't go? Wait, I'm going for Yu-chan and Yukimura san. I do not need to think of him. Yes!_

Satisfied with her thoughts, she was finally able to concentrate on the current conversation but to her surprise, the conversation about the person she _didn't want to think about_. "Hey, did you see Sanada san just there?" A girl named Tina said nudging the girl with brown hair next to her. "Yeah." She said fanning herself and winking. "He's hot. Whether he's scary or not is a different case. But he's definitely an eye-candy." Kimihiro, once again turned towards said man. _He's ok, I guess. Nothing to go ga-ga over, right?_ She bit her lip. _Well, ok, maybe he's a little handsome. But only a little bit. He shouldn't be frowning-_ "Hey, Kimihiro chan!" Tina called her out of her musings. "You sit beside Sanada san, don't you?" she only nodded meekly. "Isn't it fun? Sitting by _The Emperor_ all through the high school years?" Kimihiro only scratched her head dumbly. "You're no fun, Kimihiro. Never noticing the cute guys." The brunette said and Kimihiro scoffed. Arima laughed. _Only if they knew._

 **To be continued…**

 **A/N: This chapter could be a little crappy. Please review. Criticism is highly appreciated.**


	9. Chapter 9: The Happy Ending

It was Saturday and Renji was waiting for the others to reach the station. They had ended practice an hour ago so they all could go home, freshen up and meet up at the train station to go on their _outing._ He bought eight tickets for the boys, since Arima had _insisted_ (guess why) they come separately.

He sat on a bench waiting for the others. The station was more or less empty. Not a lot of people were eager to come out at 10:37 am on a Saturday morning, unless they had plans, of course. Their district prelims were up in a solid two weeks. Their practice was going pretty good. They were as usual, aiming for the nationals. They were used to going on outings for bonding and stuff. But this outing was to serve them two-ways. Bonding and a _certain fukubuchou's potential love interest._

Renji snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Niou and Akaya calling out to him. "Hey!" Akaya greeted excitedly. Niou grinned at the second year ace. "He's so excited, he'd been skipping all the way to the station." Akaya's face turned red at that. "I-I did not!" he protested weakly.

They talked for a while before the others joined them and they headed towards their given platform. They then boarded the train and off they went. The journey was uneventful sans Yukimura almost constantly texting someone. It did raise a few questions, but no one dared to push it.

After about an hour's ride, they finally reached their destined station. They then walked to the amusement park where they had planned to hangout. They all went through the gates after buying their tickets and were heading towards various rides, when they looked back to see Yukimura, Renji and Niou not coming with them. "Come on you guys!" Jackal and Akaya called impatiently (apparently Jackal was pretty excited too). Yukimura only smiled at them. "Yes, but we have to wait a bit. We have two friends joining us today." Niou and Renji nodded in agreement.

"Friends?" Sanada asked tilting his head. _So are these the people he'd been texting all this time?_ He looked up to see two figures heading towards them. Sanada felt his eyes widened and jaw drop at sight unfolding in front of him. He could NOT believe this.

Kimihiro and Arima had reached the amusement park around 11:30, earlier than the boys, and had decided to explore. Arima had forced Kimihiro to come to the park separately with her claiming that the boys might stink since they were coming from their practice. Even though Kimihro couldn't really imagine that happening, she knew better than to argue with her friend. She knew Arima could be a low-key creep sometimes. But not on a Yukimura Seiichi-Level. Which was a relief.

Arima reached her home at 8 in the morning saying it was necessary to dress nicely. Needless to say that both girls had fun dressing up together. At 9:30 they left Kimihiro's house. Arima was dressed in a form-fitting striped crop top and black shorts. Kimihiro on the other hand refused to wear anything _adventurous._ In the end, she agreed to wear an over-sized shirt tucked into a pair of denim shorts.

After getting a text from Yukimura, they headed near the gates, where he had said they were. Arima called out to the group.

Sanada couldn't believe his eyes. He had seen her in casual attire before. But today, _wow,_ he thought. Arima was there with her, but he could only see Kimihiro. The shorts she wore made her curves more apparent and revealed a pair of long shapely legs. He didn't fail to notice the attention she was getting. A _lot_ of boys were staring at both girls as they greeted the others in the group. He glared at them when they met his gaze.

Niou, standing beside Sanada let out a whistle. "Nice legs, Elle." He said winking. Sanada shot him a glare, which he ignored. Kimihhiro's face turned bright red, "Oh shut up. Baka Haru." She scoffed. "Kimi senpai and Arima senpai is here too!" Akaya jumped up and down excitedly. They all talked for a while then walked towards the roller coaster.

Arima and Yukimura nodded to each other. They had planned this outing _quite thoroughly._ As soon as their turn on the roller coaster came, Arima immediately paired up with Yukimura, Jackal with Marui and Renji with Yagyuu. The ones that were left were, Niou, Kimihro, Sanada and Akaya. And before Sanada could make a move, Niou pulled Kimihiro onto the seat next to him. Sanada was left standing with Akaya. And he was _not_ happy.

Akaya on the other hand gulped nervously. Ever since _the library incident_ , he had carefully avoided being alone with the fukubuchou. He had prayed for anyone to ride with him except Sanada. But luck was not on his side. He reluctantly took a seat beside the, now stone faced, fukubuchou.

The ride was entertaining, to say the least. Jackal, despite being one of the most enthusiastic ones, was screaming and clawing at Marui's arm, whose bubble gum bubble had popped and was sticking to his face. Renji and Yagyuu were frozen in their seats. Arima and Yukimura were probably the only ones enjoying the ride. Niou was screaming and having fun with Kimihiro by his side holding onto his arm and laughing. Sanada wanted to kick Niou off the roller coaster. _How dare he!_ _I will make him run a thousand laps!_ _Get away from him Ellen!_ He thought while desperately trying to control his temper and the wailing Akaya beside him.

Akaya, probably having the worst seatmate ever, was screaming from his fright and his fukubuchou. He was having a hard time controlling his fear and the faces that Sanada was making made him wail harder. He, on the verge of tears, prayed for the ride to end so he could escape his fukubuchou.

Akaya's prayers were heard and the ride ended soon. They all tumbled out of their seats and exited the ride. Kimihiro was still holding on to Niou's arm. "That was so cool, ne?" she said excitedly. Niou only chuckled and looked around casually. He saw Sanada glaring daggers at him and smirked. _I hope all this gets fixed before the fukubuchou has my head._

They had ice cream and cotton candy. Marui and Kimihiro stuck together during this part of the outing since both of them loved sweets. They tried different candies together and chatted. Arima and Yukimura, the masterminds of the plan, observed how Kimihro's actions affected Sanada.

Sanada crushed his ice cream cone seeing Marui and Kimihiro sharing their ice creams with each other. He didn't even notice Jackal eating his cotton candy because he was too busy watching Kimihiro. Almost everyone could tell Sanada was acting weird. And they all knew why. Except for Yukimura, Niou and Renji, none of the boys knew that the girls were joining them. But it was now clear to them that their fukubuchou was head-over-heels for Kimihiro. And they were ready to help him out in any way they could.

"But if we're trying to get the fukubuchou and Kimihiro together, why are we making him angry?" Jackal asked. "We're not making Sanada angry. We're making him jealous. It should make him realize his feelings for Kimihiro." Yukimura explained. "You mean to say he doesn't even know about his feelings yet?!" Marui asked, shocked. Arima nodded laughing.

They were now having lunch and Sanada's entire attention was on Kimihiro and Niou, which is why the others were able to discuss the issue freely. Niou was letting Kimirio eat from his plate and was whispering things to her and making her laugh. Sanada was fuming. He had the sudden urge to take Kimihro away from Niou and the others. _I really can't stand any other guy being with her._ He gulped hard. Was he _jealous?_ Was that even possible?

They went on more rides after lunch. Kimihiro had carefully avoided Sanada the entire day. She had noticed him staring at her a lot of times. _You avoided me the same way for two weeks. No way am I talking to you now._ She stayed with Niou most of the time. He was nice and friendly. Unlike a _certain gorilla._

They headed for the final ride of the day, which was the Ferris wheel. The sun was setting. It was the perfect time to ride the Ferris wheel.

This time though everyone paired up and got into their cars, leaving Sanada and Kimihiro standing alone. They awkwardly shuffled into their passenger car when it was their turn. And the ride began.

They sat across from each other in awkward silence as their cabin went up. Kimihiro stood up and watched the scenery that the windows and the height provided. It was beautiful. The setting sun made the scenery complete. She didn't notice Sanada standing behind her.

"Kimihiro," he called, stepping closer to her. Kimihiro only looked sideways to show that he'd been heard. "I want to talk to you." "I don't." she said, turning her head to watch the sun set again. His desperation was getting the better of him, and on impulse, Sanada grabbed her arm and turned her around. "Why are you doing this? I don't like anyone else getting too close to you." Kimihiro stared, wide eyed. She opened her mouth to say something but was cut off with the Ferris wheel lurching to a stop, making Sanada slam into her due to the sudden movement.

Sanada's hands were on either side of Kimihiro's head. His large physique trapping all her escape routes. They were at the very top. But neither of them were seeing the vast landscape that lay beneath them nor the setting sun in front. No, they stood there for the longest time, unaware of everything around them.

Suddenly aware of her surroundings, Kimihiro pushed Sanada away. But Sanada pulled her back against him. She struggled in his hold, but stopped, as Sanada tilted her chin up.

"I love you." Sanada admitted with a sigh. He couldn't hide his feelings anymore. Kimihiro puffed her cheeks and hid her face in his chest. "Baka" she grumbled, putting her arms around his neck. And Sanada immediately knew that she felt the same way. Funny how love works.

And as the last rays of the setting sun colored the sky, Sanada pressed his mouth against Kimihiro's in a deep and passionate kiss.

And the rest was history.

 **A/N: I am so embarrassed! / Please review. Hoping to update soon.**


	10. Chapter 10: Extended Ending

**Extended ending:**

Sanada stood smiling victoriously as Kimihiro scoffed on the other side of the net. It had been almost a month since they had started going out. Winning the district prelims made their relationship even more special. He was thrilled to know that his girlfriend was such a skilled tennis player. Not on his level. But she was pretty good.

The game they were playing had finished with Sanada winning six games to four. Kimihiro wasn't very thrilled with the result and so, she refused to come near him.

Sanada crossed the net and put his arms around her. "You'll beat me next time." He said kissing her head. She only puffed her cheeks. "I love you." She whined. Sanada tilted his head in confusion. He searched her face to understand why she'd said this all on a sudden. "I need food." She sulked. Sanada had to stop breathing to keep himself from laughing. _Ellen_ could be a handful sometimes.

"We'll get some burgers on the way home, okay?" he asked as they packed their things. Kimihiro nodded. And they left the courts, hand in hand, the sun setting in the horizon. Just like that fateful day.

 **A/N: It's finally over. Please let me know what you think. Criticism is greatly appreciated.**


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